The following discussion of the background art is intended to facilitate an understanding of the present invention only. The discussion is not an acknowledgement or admission that any of the material referred to is or was part of the common general knowledge as at the priority date of the application.
Belt conveyors are generally used for materials handling and transportation. In particular, belt conveyors are commonly used for transportation of particulate materials; for example, in mining and grain-handling applications.
A belt conveyor typically comprises an endless conveyor belt passing around end rollers to define an upper load-carrying run and a lower return run. The upper and lower runs are supported at intervals by a series of sets of idler rollers. Each roller set usually includes two or more idler rollers disposed in an end-to-end relation and positioned to engage the underside of the respective run effectively distributing a downward force of the conveyor belt between them. Where the load carrying run is of trough configuration, the idler roller sets each typically comprise a horizontal central roller and two inclined side rollers on opposed ends of the central roller arranged to guide the trough configuration of the belt between them.
There may be a need to change such idler rollers over time, such as when they become defective. The procedure, which is sometimes referred to as roller change-out, typically entails stopping the conveyor, getting access to the rollers by, for example, lifting the section of the conveyor belt at which the defective idler roller is located from the rollers to provide access to the roller, removing and replacing the defective roller, and then returning the lifted section of the conveyor belt to the original position so that it is supported on the replacement roller. In certain circumstances, it may also be necessary to remove the material being carried on the conveyor belt in order to access the rollers supporting the belt.
Accordingly, it is often necessary that operation of the belt conveyor be stopped so that the belt is not moving during the roller change-out procedure. The requirement to stop operation of the belt conveyor can lead to significant losses, both in terms of time and production opportunities. For example, in a mining environment, movement of product on a conveyor may translate to thousands of dollars per hour, with a stoppage of any number of minutes equating to significant losses.
Further, the roller removal and replacement step in the roller change-out procedure is typically performed manually. This can be disadvantageous as it requires use of trained personnel, can also be time consuming, and may expose personnel to hazardous working positions. Stopping operation of a conveyor is particularly important where a roller change-out is done manually, as it forms a major safety concern for the personnel performing the roller change-out.
It is against this background, and the problems and difficulties associated therewith, that the present invention has been developed.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome, or at least ameliorate, one or more of the deficiencies of the problems mentioned above, or to provide a useful or commercial option for performing a roller change-out on a belt conveyor.